Raven grins, shifting her eyes around the room, pausing when they land on me. “Guess I’m in the hospital.”
We rush to her side.
She rolls her eyes, then winces. “Fuck, my head.”
“Yeah, your fucking head,” I snap, waiting for her to come back at me, but her brows smooth out when she looks my way again.
I have to use all my fucking concentration to force my body not to shake right now.
“I’m good, Big Man,” she rasps and sits up.
Good. Right. She got attacked on our grounds, again.
“Doc said soon as you woke up you could go. You wanna?” Royce asks gently.
She nods. “Why would they even put me in a room if they were letting me leave?”
“Because the caveman demanded it, threw their name out there real big and loud like,” Victoria offers and Raven laughs, looking to her.
Our eyes go with her, and now that Victoria is standing and the blankets fallen, we see her torn shirt and the dozens of scars across her stomach.
Her eyes hit Raven’s, who pointedly looks down and Victoria’s eyes snap wide as she spins away, clearing her throat.
“Well, you’re awake, so I’m gonna head back.” She rushes for the door, freezing when Captain’s bloody sweatshirt lands on her head.
She stands there facing the door a minute, before pulling it off and over her head. She slowly steps from the room without a backward glance.
Raven shrugs off our questioning glares while reaching out to touch Cap’s arm in thanks.
“Raven,” I regain her attention. “The fuck happened today?”
“What did you steal from the Graven cabin the night we broke in?” she asks, frowning when all three of us hesitate.
She pulls her hands away from us, looking off to the side.
“Why are you asking this now?” I eye her.
A humorless laugh leaves her, and she tenses from the pain it causes.
Her eyes slide back to mine, and she does nothing to hide her irritation.
She opens her mouth to speak right as the nurse walks in with a smile. “Oh good, you’re awake!”
“Get out,” she tells her.
When the woman makes no move and just fucking stands there like a damn statue, Raven slowly drags her glare from mine. “I said out.”
The nurse rushes from the room and Raven looks back to me, eyes cold as fucking ice.
“I’m only gonna do this once, so listen and understand what I’m really trying to say,” she forces past clenched teeth. “Stop whispering in my fucking ear how much I ‘belong’ if you’re gonna treat me like the outsider I already know I am when it’s convenient for you. I get it. You want answers and you expect them the second you demand and not a moment later.” Her eyes narrow and she leans forward. “But look at me, Maddoc. Look where I’m sitting, look at my face. Have I not earned them, like a good fucking girl” – she purposely makes a mockery of herself – “just as much, or should I drop to my knees and beg like the peasant would for her king?”
My jaw ticks at her bullshit and I shoot from the seat to crowd her space, but I get no time to respond because Captain beats me to it.
“It was Zoey’s birth certificate,” he rushes out, and while Raven’s eyes fly to his, I feel his glare burning into the side of my head. “And, no, you didn’t earn shit, and you’ll never have to beg. You fucking deserve to know. I don’t wanna hide anything from you.”
I meet my brother’s eyes and finally, he pulls them off me to look to her.
“Ask whatever you want,” he whispers ruefully.
Royce drops his eyes to his lap, and I keep mine locked on Raven’s face.
“Why would he have that?” she asks him. “Collins, I mean?”
“We think he was the money behind the move,” he answers.
She considers what he says a second, then her brows furrow. “Zoey’s mom. The transfer?”
He nods. “Bet he was the one behind what Perkins offered you to leave, too.”
“That little bitch is working with Perkins for some reason, but that’s all we know,” Royce adds, looking up at her. He moves to grip her hand and squeezes. “And for the record, I wanted to tell you that a long time ago.” His glare flies my way.
“Uncle,” she says, and our frowns meet.
“What?” I ask.
“I heard them in the hall. That’s why he waited for me in the girl’s bathroom, he knew I was listening, saw me maybe, I don’t know. He called him Uncle.” Her eyes bounce between ours. “Said something about cleaning up his messes.”
Captain darts to his feet while Royce scoots closer to Raven on the hospital bed.
“What do you mean?” he prompts, but she ignores him and fires off a question of her own.
“Who is Donley?” she asks.
“Donley is the head Graven, Collins’ grandfather.”
“He wants the birth certificate back, he’s afraid Donley will find it.” Her eyes fly to mine. “He has no fucking clue we broke in and stole it weeks ago.”
“So, Perkins is making moves, and Collins is coming in to sweep them under the rug when he leaves loose ends?” I ask.
“I’m not exactly sure. It sounded like Perkins was the one in charge, but then maybe needed help with something and Collins was who he went to for it. He didn’t seem like he trusted Collins much, though.”
When she flicks her eyes away a moment, mine narrow.
“Raven.”
Her lips pinch together before she says. “He acted like I was the center of the problem, said I’d see things their way in the end.” Her eyes bounce between ours. “He mentioned your dad, and how he’d have to make it right.”
“Make what right?” I push to my feet.
She shrugs. “Don’t know. He said, ‘why do you think she’s here.’ Why am I here, you guys?”
“This makes no fucking sense,” Royce grumbles, sliding his hands down his face.
“Wait.” Cap freezes a minute, then speaks low, almost as if he’s talking to himself. “How could the birth certificate possibly make any noise in the Graven world? She’s my kid. Brayshaw.” He looks to me. “How could that affect them? Why would Perkins wanna hide this, hide her, from them?”
“That’s not all,” Raven adds. “Collins said Perkins was washed from their hands, I assume he means Graven’s, years ago.”